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Weigookin74
Joined: 26 Oct 2009
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 Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 5:35 am Post subject: |
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| Wiltern wrote: |
| CentralCali wrote: |
| And exactly how many was that? Is there anything at all resembling statistics for this? Or is it yet another "standard excuse"? |
Seoul Magazine, October 2010:
The bottom line for initial contract refusal was indeed a high rate of flight by foreigners, some of whom appeared to deliberately run up high bills before disappearing abroad, says Kim Dong-kyoon, manager of KT's Marketing Strategy Team. "This was not just the case with the iPhone but with all of our contract phones." |
That may be a legitmate point for some but doesn't apply to a foriegner who has been here for 9 years. I think people who have been here continually here longer than 3 or 4 years, especially working for a public school or university ought to have more leeway. |
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PatrickGHBusan
Joined: 24 Jun 2008
Location: Busan (1997-2008) Canada 2008 -
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 5:50 am Post subject: |
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Bascially, the OP should contact customer service for the company.
That would have been my first move after asking to speak with the manager.
As for the foreigners running up bills and leaving them unpaid....my wife's cousin works for a telecom company as a supervisor. He is in charge of a few stores that sell Iphones and cells. Well they did have problems with foreigners (not just teachers) pulling the high bill and ditch method. At a few stores this became an endemic problem.
I personally think that if I ran one of those places, I would require a deposit from any customer that was not either a citizen or a resident.
That is simple prevention policy and it is applied in many places. The deposit can also be scaled to the situation so that a foreigner who has been in Korea for years and has a financial history with a telecom service company could get a deposit waiver for example.
Again, this is done in many places. |
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BadBadMan
Joined: 06 Jun 2008
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 6:07 am Post subject: |
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AFAIK, telecom transactions don't appear on your credit history until your account becomes SUPER delinquent. Like 3 to 6 months delinquent.
Also, Korea's not THAT harsh on you.
As a Korean in the U.S. just starting college, the local phone company made me deposit $300 to get a telephone line; Sprint made me deposit $250 to get a 2-year contract for a cell phone; the utility company made me deposit $200 to get power; car rental companies didn't let me rent cars because I had no credit card; credit card companies didn't let me get one because I wasn't a permanent resident or citizen. This was like 12 years ago, but I'd been in the U.S. since 1st grade, so yeah I was in the States for 12 years already.
My family and I spent $200k for my college education. When I ran out of money in my senior year with 1 semester left, the school and gov't and banks told me "bye bye" so I had to scrap up cash in Korea for 4 years before spending all of it again in the States to finish up. H1B quota was used up when I graduated so I had to wait till last month for the quota to renew. Now, I need to persuade prospective employers to shell out $3k in visa expenses to hire a fresh noob that's 30. 18 years total in the States and still no love. Still none. Sigh.. |
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PatrickGHBusan
Joined: 24 Jun 2008
Location: Busan (1997-2008) Canada 2008 -
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 8:58 am Post subject: |
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| BadBadMan wrote: |
AFAIK, telecom transactions don't appear on your credit history until your account becomes SUPER delinquent. Like 3 to 6 months delinquent.
Also, Korea's not THAT harsh on you.
As a Korean in the U.S. just starting college, the local phone company made me deposit $300 to get a telephone line; Sprint made me deposit $250 to get a 2-year contract for a cell phone; the utility company made me deposit $200 to get power; car rental companies didn't let me rent cars because I had no credit card; credit card companies didn't let me get one because I wasn't a permanent resident or citizen. This was like 12 years ago, but I'd been in the U.S. since 1st grade, so yeah I was in the States for 12 years already.
My family and I spent $200k for my college education. When I ran out of money in my senior year with 1 semester left, the school and gov't and banks told me "bye bye" so I had to scrap up cash in Korea for 4 years before spending all of it again in the States to finish up. H1B quota was used up when I graduated so I had to wait till last month for the quota to renew. Now, I need to persuade prospective employers to shell out $3k in visa expenses to hire a fresh noob that's 30. 18 years total in the States and still no love. Still none. Sigh.. |
Well that certainly puts some of the things said in this thread in perspective... |
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Who's Your Daddy?
Joined: 30 May 2010
Location: Victoria, Canada.
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 2:48 pm Post subject: |
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| BadBadMan wrote: |
H1B quota was used up...
18 years total in the States and still no love. Still none. Sigh.. |
18 years and still on an H1b visa? |
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crossmr
Joined: 22 Nov 2008
Location: Hwayangdong, Seoul
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 3:29 pm Post subject: |
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| BadBadMan wrote: |
AFAIK, telecom transactions don't appear on your credit history until your account becomes SUPER delinquent. Like 3 to 6 months delinquent.
Also, Korea's not THAT harsh on you.
As a Korean in the U.S. just starting college, the local phone company made me deposit $300 to get a telephone line; Sprint made me deposit $250 to get a 2-year contract for a cell phone; the utility company made me deposit $200 to get power; car rental companies didn't let me rent cars because I had no credit card; credit card companies didn't let me get one because I wasn't a permanent resident or citizen. This was like 12 years ago, but I'd been in the U.S. since 1st grade, so yeah I was in the States for 12 years already.
My family and I spent $200k for my college education. When I ran out of money in my senior year with 1 semester left, the school and gov't and banks told me "bye bye" so I had to scrap up cash in Korea for 4 years before spending all of it again in the States to finish up. H1B quota was used up when I graduated so I had to wait till last month for the quota to renew. Now, I need to persuade prospective employers to shell out $3k in visa expenses to hire a fresh noob that's 30. 18 years total in the States and still no love. Still none. Sigh.. |
No no no. That's impossible, as we've been repeatedly told here by all manner of t.. people their home countries just let everyone sign-up for everything without any trouble at all. There are no fees, in fact as soon as you get off the airplane the companies are just waiting there to hand you your merchandise and services. |
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BadBadMan
Joined: 06 Jun 2008
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 3:43 pm Post subject: |
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| Who's Your Daddy? wrote: |
| BadBadMan wrote: |
H1B quota was used up...
18 years total in the States and still no love. Still none. Sigh.. |
18 years and still on an H1b visa? |
18 years and still hoping to get an H1b visa. 
My case is sort of an exception I guess. And pledging allegiance to the American flag every day in grade school didn't help. lol.
H1B still won't solve all the problems, either. I know this Japanese guy that works at the Deloitte near here with an H1B, he applied for a green card after working there 5 years, and another 5 years later, he's still waiting for it to arrive. He can't switch employers since his H1B is up and he's on "pending" status, so basically he's been wanting to get out of the firm for a while now but he still can't. lol. Apparently the gov't "mistakenly skipped" the stack of applications that contained his the first time around, and he's paying for it with years of indentured servitude.
All I want is for my future kid not to get stuck with Korean education now, but man do I have to jump through hoops for that. |
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skconqueror
Joined: 31 Jul 2005
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 7:33 pm Post subject: |
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| BadBadMan wrote: |
From a Canadian perspective:
1. As a Korean in the U.S. just starting college, the local phone company made me deposit $300 to get a telephone line; Sprint made me deposit $250 to get a 2-year contract for a cell phone;
2. the utility company made me deposit $200 to get power;
3. car rental companies didn't let me rent cars because I had no credit card; credit card companies didn't let me get one because I wasn't a permanent resident or citizen. |
Your 3 examples are not because you are not a citizen. They are rules imposed to everyone. It is hardly the same point.
1. if you had credit there would be no deposit. (same as me when I was 18 and didnt have a co signer)
2. same as me when I did not have utilities before.
3. no rental car company will rent without a cc. That is just silly, how could they recoup if someone damaged their cars.
and I somewhat question the fact you said you were in the US for 12 years before and you weren't a permanent resident. |
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Steelrails
Joined: 12 Mar 2009
Location: Earth, Solar System
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 7:44 pm Post subject: |
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| Sorry to hijack this a bit, but how much are these new-fangled phones? The ones with maps and dictionaries and stuff on them. How much memory do they have? What are the popular models? Never been munch of a latest cell phone guy- as long as it calls and texts, that's all I need, but the maps and dictionary seem handy. |
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crossmr
Joined: 22 Nov 2008
Location: Hwayangdong, Seoul
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 7:55 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| Your 3 examples are not because you are not a citizen. They are rules imposed to everyone. It is hardly the same point. |
Except his final one included a reason because he was not a citizen, not about renting a car, but getting a Credit card.
As for the first about getting credit, can foreigners get credit in the US? isn't it based on your SSN, so without one, how are you going to get credit, that they can check?
| Quote: |
| Sorry to hijack this a bit, but how much are these new-fangled phones? The ones with maps and dictionaries and stuff on them. How much memory do they have? What are the popular models? Never been munch of a latest cell phone guy- as long as it calls and texts, that's all I need, but the maps and dictionary seem handy. |
Paying outright.. the iphone4 is around 900,000. I don't know about the other ones.
Yes, they're incredibly useful. Buses, maps, etc. it really helps you get around if your Korean isn't up to snuff. |
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BadBadMan
Joined: 06 Jun 2008
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 9:43 pm Post subject: |
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| skconqueror wrote: |
Your 3 examples are not because you are not a citizen. They are rules imposed to everyone. It is hardly the same point.
1. if you had credit there would be no deposit. (same as me when I was 18 and didnt have a co signer)
2. same as me when I did not have utilities before.
3. no rental car company will rent without a cc. That is just silly, how could they recoup if someone damaged their cars.
and I somewhat question the fact you said you were in the US for 12 years before and you weren't a permanent resident. |
You know, you're probably right. They are hardly the same points because OP was (or at least wanted to be) on a free waiting list to buy a cool new phone, whereas the deposits were actual cash shell-outs for necessities.
1. The point I wanted to make was that as a foreigner, you will not have any choice but to pay those deposits because an 18-year-old foreigner obviously will not have any credit transactions. Cosigners shouldn't even be brought into this because you can just say that OP should have had his wife/friend/drinking buddy/whoever to be on the list on his behalf.
2. Same as above.
3. Rental car companies' need for a cc becomes moot when you pay them for a collision damage waiver. They don't take check cards -- only credit cards, which foreigners are not allowed to get without permanent residency. Not sure about the modern forms but I've read the cc application requirements before and also remember a checkmark on applications where you had to answer whether you were a permanent resident or not, and I chose not to lie. I did have an SSN (albeit with NOT VALID FOR WORK stamped on it) because they were issued to foreigners in the past. Relating to what crossmr said, yes it's true that nonresidents are no longer given SSNs, and that can cause some problems especially in smaller towns or smaller companies that don't have workarounds for them.
And dude... When I say I've lived 12 years before starting college without permanent residency that's exactly what I mean. I've got no Korean education whatsoever. I'm not sure it's even legal any more for schools to make all the kids pledge allegiance to the American flag every morning, which I was made to do throughout grade school. |
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calicoe
Joined: 23 Dec 2008
Location: South Korea
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| Posted: Fri May 13, 2011 11:59 pm Post subject: |
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| BadBadMan wrote: |
| skconqueror wrote: |
Your 3 examples are not because you are not a citizen. They are rules imposed to everyone. It is hardly the same point.
1. if you had credit there would be no deposit. (same as me when I was 18 and didnt have a co signer)
2. same as me when I did not have utilities before.
3. no rental car company will rent without a cc. That is just silly, how could they recoup if someone damaged their cars.
and I somewhat question the fact you said you were in the US for 12 years before and you weren't a permanent resident. |
You know, you're probably right. They are hardly the same points because OP was (or at least wanted to be) on a free waiting list to buy a cool new phone, whereas the deposits were actual cash shell-outs for necessities.
1. The point I wanted to make was that as a foreigner, you will not have any choice but to pay those deposits because an 18-year-old foreigner obviously will not have any credit transactions. Cosigners shouldn't even be brought into this because you can just say that OP should have had his wife/friend/drinking buddy/whoever to be on the list on his behalf.
2. Same as above.
3. Rental car companies' need for a cc becomes moot when you pay them for a collision damage waiver. They don't take check cards -- only credit cards, which foreigners are not allowed to get without permanent residency. Not sure about the modern forms but I've read the cc application requirements before and also remember a checkmark on applications where you had to answer whether you were a permanent resident or not, and I chose not to lie. I did have an SSN (albeit with NOT VALID FOR WORK stamped on it) because they were issued to foreigners in the past. Relating to what crossmr said, yes it's true that nonresidents are no longer given SSNs, and that can cause some problems especially in smaller towns or smaller companies that don't have workarounds for them.
And dude... When I say I've lived 12 years before starting college without permanent residency that's exactly what I mean. I've got no Korean education whatsoever. I'm not sure it's even legal any more for schools to make all the kids pledge allegiance to the American flag every morning, which I was made to do throughout grade school. |
Yeah, that sounds harsh dude, and make no mistake about it - the U.S. can be a very harsh place economically. However, I was about to echo the other poster: it is basically the same for everyone, especially those with little money, no credit cards, or no credit history. I don't know what's going on with your visa/citizenship, but I do know people who have become naturalized citizens in a shorter amount of time than you.
Steelrails quote:
"Sorry to hijack this a bit, but how much are these new-fangled phones? The ones with maps and dictionaries and stuff on them. How much memory do they have? What are the popular models? Never been munch of a latest cell phone guy- as long as it calls and texts, that's all I need, but the maps and dictionary seem handy."
Yeah, I thought the same thing, especially after NYC_gal's thread about winding up in a hospital, and having a smart phone as the only saving grace. So, I inquired, and the Korean smart phones are about 600,000 won (I think there are some cheaper, though), and the newest Iphone is 800,000 won, but you need a two year contract (I am one year in). However, I could've given them a deposit. This is at the phone place right at Seoul Station, midway between the stairs leading up from the subway station on the escalator, to the station and Lotte Mart. |
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Steelrails
Joined: 12 Mar 2009
Location: Earth, Solar System
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| Posted: Sat May 14, 2011 8:56 am Post subject: |
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| Yeah, I thought the same thing, especially after NYC_gal's thread about winding up in a hospital, and having a smart phone as the only saving grace. So, I inquired, and the Korean smart phones are about 600,000 won (I think there are some cheaper, though), and the newest Iphone is 800,000 won, |
Good Night!
No, thank you. I'll just stay with my freebie.
Thanks for the info though. |
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crossmr
Joined: 22 Nov 2008
Location: Hwayangdong, Seoul
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| Posted: Sat May 14, 2011 3:23 pm Post subject: |
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| Steelrails wrote: |
| Quote: |
| Yeah, I thought the same thing, especially after NYC_gal's thread about winding up in a hospital, and having a smart phone as the only saving grace. So, I inquired, and the Korean smart phones are about 600,000 won (I think there are some cheaper, though), and the newest Iphone is 800,000 won, |
Good Night!
No, thank you. I'll just stay with my freebie.
Thanks for the info though. |
That's buying it straight out. If you take a 2 year contract and spread the phone price out, it only works out to around 400,000 or something like that I think. Your "free" phone would likely have retailed for around 300,000-400,000 new when you got it, if you got it on contract. |
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Sticks
Joined: 13 Mar 2011
Location: Seoul, Korea
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| Posted: Sun May 15, 2011 5:48 am Post subject: |
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With a contract with KT my Galaxy S2 got discounted to 767000W from a RRP of 847000W. I'm paying off 767000W over 24 months, BUT since i'm on a 2 year contract it gets discounted heavily. Every month repayment would be 31950 BUT:
First 12 months I get a discount of 24010W/month, which means I pay 7940*12 = 95280W.
Last 12 months I get a discount of 26210W/month, which means I pay 5740*12 = 68880W.
Total 164160W for the phone over 24 months.
Cheap cheap. |
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